MALTAHÖHE, 22 FEB (NAMPA) – Namibia remains one of the least corrupt countries in Africa according to Transparency International (TI)’s Corruption Perception Index (CPI) of 2017.
In a media release issued by the Namibian graft watchdog, the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) on Thursday, Namibia is ranked 53 out of 180 countries globally and fifth on the African continent with a score of 51 out of 100.
Namibia comes in position four from five last year while in the SADC region Namibia takes position three after Botswana and Seychelles.
Namibia has been ranked as one of the least corrupt countries based on the fight against corruption, good governance and its tolerance on freedom of the press, association and expression.
Botswana, Seychelles, Cape Verde and Rwanda are the only African countries ranked above Namibia out of the 180 countries ranked.
The latest CPI Index highlights that the majority of the countries are making little or no progress to end corruption, while journalists and activists in corrupt countries risked their lives in an effort to speak out against corruption.
TI uses a scale of zero to 100, where zero is regarded as highly corrupt and 100 is devoid of corruption. The index found that more than two-thirds of countries, score below 50 with an average score of 43. Namibia went down by one point from 52 to 51.
Further analysis of the results indicate that countries with the least protection for press and non-governmental organisations also tend to have the worst rates of corruption.
Some of the factors taken into consideration in ranking the countries include the existence of laws such as access to information, procurement laws, anti-corruption laws and the general economic performance, including the distribution of wealth.
The ACC statement said with the recently introduced anti-corruption measures such as the robust public procurement law, whistleblower protection law, national anti-corruption strategy, coupled with commitment to transparency and accountability in public service deliveries, Namibia’s ranking is likely to increase in the next index.
The statement highlighted the lack of legislation on access to information, maladministration and mismanagement of resources, non-compliance with public procurement procedures and over-expenditures as elements that can impair Namibia’s positive progress in competitive index.
The statement also outlined, as a grave concern, the “undeserved and biased blacklisting of Namibia as one of the tax havens which may cause damage to Namibia’s good international image on democracy and good governance”.
While Namibia is still regarded as a least corrupt country, there is no room for complacency. Joint efforts are needed to take the momentum to a higher level, the statement said.
Namibia scored 52 points out of 100 on the 2016 CPI.
Transparency International is a Germany-based non-profit organisation that tracks perception of corruption all over the world.
(NAMPA)
RG/HP/PS